Question NO475 to the Minister in The Presidency for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities

Reply:

 

1. The Department continue to mainstream youth employment in the various sectors. In this case, the Department developed the Monitoring and Evaluation Framework for the National Youth Policy 2020-2030, to track implementation of policy priorities, including Economic Development, Job Creation, and Entrepreneurship. As a government, we announced the Presidential Youth Employment Intervention, which is a comprehensive response to the youth unemployment challenge. We have also launched the Presidential Employment Stimulus, which supports public and social employment, and which has created close on 880,000 job opportunities since it was established. A flagship programme of the employment stimulus is the school assistants’ programme, which has placed 287,000 young people in schools across the country. These young people are accessing meaningful employment opportunities, such as being Assistant Teachers who support teachers by contributing to positive learning outcomes in our schools. Government has also launched the Future of Work Ambassadors programme. This programme focuses on improving and modernising the recruitment and retention of youth in the public service. Government is pursuing innovative new ways of linking learning with earning. The National Skills Fund is pioneering the pay-for-performance skills development model that will create 8,000 job opportunities for young people in digital skills. Additionally, the National Youth Service is being expanded to inculcate in all young people a sense of service and opportunities to learn and earn a stipend. Under the auspices of the Department and the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) it has already recruited 35 000 young people with a target of 50 000. Lastly, the National Youth Development Agency, working with other partners, continues to provide young entrepreneurs with the capital, capacity and networks to grow their businesses. In the past financial year, 7,500 young people have received financial enterprise support and over 30,000 young people have received other enterprise support from the National Youth Development Agency and the Department of Small Business Development.

1. Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) is a government department that derives its mandate from the Statistics Act (Act No. 6 of 1999). StatsSA collects and process data on persons and companies for statistical purposes. Its vision is to improve lives through data ecosystems. As a Department, the work done by Stats SA ensures that there is evidence-based planning and targeted interventions. The Department continue to monitor the youth unemployment rate for both the 15 and 24 year olds and 25 to 34 year olds as measured by Stats SA.

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Approved by Minister

Ms M Nkoana-Mashabane, MP

Date:

Additional Information:

Youth unemployment is a national crisis that demands urgent, innovative and coordinated solutions. The Presidential Youth Employment Intervention is a direct response to the challenge that too many young people are not transitioning from learning to earning. Of the 1.2 million young people entering the labour market each year, more than 65% remain outside of employment, education and training. Those young people who do manage to access opportunities tend to zigzag on often broken pathways, falling in and out of education and short-term work so that they are unable to realise their potential and get a foothold in the economy.

The Presidential Youth Employment Intervention is government’s plan to address this challenge. It is designed to effectively transition young people into the labour market, aiming to significantly reduce the high rate of youth unemployment. It is intended to coordinate, enhance, and scale up existing programmes across government and through close partnerships with the private sector. Bringing together a wide range of partners within and beyond government, it is the largest and most comprehensive plan to address youth employment in South Africa’s democratic history.

To pursue this objective and to unlock the energy and potential of young people, we are implementing five priority actions to catalyse long-term change, the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) working in collaboration with the Department of Employment and Labour (DEL) and the Harambee Youth Employment Accelerator as well as a range of other stakeholders have developed the SAYouth.Mobi Platform as the National Pathway Management Network. The Pathway Management Network, recognising the barriers that young people face in entering the labour market, allows for greater alignment between the different networks and systems that exist so as to ensure that regardless of where young people enter the network they are visible across the Pathway Management Network and have access to a shared set of opportunities as well as services and resources available from government as well as other social partners. It further allows young people to build a profile and be kept update and connected to opportunities which match their profile on an ongoing basis. Partners can recruit talent and overcome their own hiring challenges by utilising the National Pathway Management Network. The SA Youth Platform has the following objectives:

1. Create More Jobs and Opportunities for Youth in the Formal, Informal and Social Economy. Identifying and aggregating jobs and work experiences is the most critical function. This will happen through sector-based approaches (e.g., Masterplans processes and working with business associations), government hiring opportunities (e.g., Stimulus programmes), private sector jobs, as well as entrepreneurship, community, township and village opportunities.

2. Drive System Change that address barriers and supports Inclusive Hiring and Reduced Unemployment. Identify and advocate for policy, regulatory, and other changes that will improve the outcomes of the entire system, including changes like reducing data costs (zero rating of SA Youth by all network operators), reduce barriers like shifting qualifications requirements to be market-related, and inform incentive schemes to promote youth employment

3. Link Youth to Opportunities and to Support – Inclusively and For Free. It connects young people to different platforms in the network where they can build their profiles, receive nudges to jobs, work experiences and income-generating programmes, encouragement, work-seeker support, learning, and opportunities (e.g. SA Youth, mapping of services).

Some Statistics

The Presidential Youth Employment is a comprehensive response to the youth unemployment challenge. We have also launched the Presidential Employment Stimulus, which supports public and social employment, and which has created close on 880,000 job opportunities since it was established.

A flagship programme of the employment stimulus is the Teacher Assistants programme, which has placed 287,000 young people in schools across the country. These young people are accessing meaningful employment while supporting teachers and contributing to positive learning outcomes in our schools.

The latest programme to be launched through the employment stimulus is the Social Employment Fund. It has begun to recruit 50,000 participants in community safety, food and nutrition, digital inclusion, and sports, arts and recreation.

We have just launched a new dashboard for the Presidential Youth Employment Intervention on the State of the Nation website. Members of the public are now able to track detailed progress with implementation and receive up-to-date information about the intervention.

Our National Pathway Management Network, which links young people to opportunities for earning, learning and support, has now signed up 2.4 million users. Over the last year, it has placed more than 600,000 young people.

As part of government’s commitment to remove the barriers that young people confront when trying to enter the public service, we are reducing the cost and effort of applying for positions. For example, applicants for public service positions are no longer required to submit certified copies of their educational qualifications and other relevant documents. This simple change will significantly reduce the cost of applying, improve turnaround times and reduce the administrative burden on departments.

Government has launched the Future of Work Ambassadors programme. This programme will focus on improving and modernising the recruitment and retention of youth in the public service.

We are pursuing innovative new ways of linking learning with earning. For example, the National Skills Fund is pioneering the pay-for-performance skills development model that will create 8,000 job opportunities for young people in digital skills.

We look to the National Youth Service to inculcate in all young people the habits of work, the taste for adventure and a sense of duty. Under the auspices of the Department and NYDA it has already recruited 35 000 young people with a target of 50 000.

The Youth Employment Service – known as YES – has reached key milestones over the last year. its partnerships with the private sector, YES has created nearly 82,000 quality work opportunities for young South Africans. This has injected over R4.6 billion into the economy through salaries alone. Corporate partners use the Youth Employment Service to build their own workforces by creating work experiences for youth in industries of the future. These include industries such digital, drones, green economy, urban farming, mining, global business services, creative industries and many more.

The young people of South Africa are imbued with a great entrepreneurial spirit and energy. The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, for example, is establishing a fund that will support an enabling ecosystem for young people to enter and sustain forms of enterprise and self-employment.

We will continue to provide young entrepreneurs with the capital and networks to grow their start-up businesses. In the past financial year, 7,500 young people have received financial enterprise support and over 30,000 young people have received other enterprise support from the National Youth Development Agency and the Department of Small Business Development.

We have adopted the National Youth Policy and the Integrated Youth Development Strategy, which directs every arm of government to respond to the needs of young people.